Digital YARN
Fashion, Retailing and Platforms
Let me start this newsletter on clothes, fashion, retailing and platforms by quoting my favourite philosopher/poet.
And the weaver said, Speak to us of Clothes.
And he answered:
Your clothes conceal much of your beauty,
yet they hide not the unbeautiful.
On Clothes BY KAHLIL GIBRAN (The Prophet)
But we live in the world of hyper personalisation and customisation driven by increasing fragmentation of customers’s need. Coupled with social media and increased paying capacity, the choices and expression of choices for customers especially the young/fashion conscious has exploded. The challenges faced by the platforms could aptly be summarised by another quote by another generational poet.
हर आदमी में होते हैं, दस बीस आदमी,
जिसको भी देखना हो कई बार देखना
: निदा फ़ाज़ली
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DTW
During the Week, RIL shares jumped 3% on Wednesday following reports of Reliance Retail in talks with QIA for investments. According to reports, Qatar Investment Authority was in advanced negotiations with Reliance Retail to invest close to $950 million to $1 billion in the company at a $100 billion valuation.
We have seen a shift in fashion retailing industry towards sustainability, personalization, influencer-driven marketing coupled with rise of D2C brands, and innovative retail experiences. These changes could be understood through the SPIN framework. There are exciting opportunities available for fashion, retailing, and platform businesses to capitalize on young consumer preferences, adopt augmented reality for engagement, embrace sustainable practices, and explore new retail formats in the ever-evolving market.
I have written about platforms and fashion in an earlier post documenting initiatives like FolkLores , an interesting Social Enterprise run (now in hibernation) by former student Gargi Kucheria and work done earlier by Yash Raj Ranga .Coincidently, Aru’s podcast on Fashion and Sustainability discussed about the Sabyasachi and H&M collaboration.
Young buyers across the world are facing reduced income and increasing debts with an uncertain future post Covid-19. This coupled with continuing remote work have forced new fashion habits. One of the side effects of this situation could be push for Cloth Rental Platform like Rent The Runway and Flyrobe in India.Speaking of borrowed clothes, what about the clothes we are borrowing from future generations !
Platforms continue to play a crucial role in promoting sustainable fashion by facilitating transparency, accessibility, and consumer education about impact of traditional practices. Many platforms enable fashion brands including D2C that prioritize eco-friendly practices, ethical sourcing, and circular economy models to reach a wider audience, fostering awareness and demand for sustainable products. Platforms also empower consumers to make informed choices by providing easily consumable information on sustainable certifications, materials, and production processes. Through personalized recommendations and targeted marketing, platforms encourage sustainable fashion consumption, driving positive environmental and social impact. By connecting sustainable fashion brands with conscious consumers, platforms have contributed significantly to the growth and transformation of the fashion industry towards a more sustainable and responsible future.
While Fast fashion platforms like Shein have disrupted the fashion industry by leveraging digital platforms to offer a vast array of trendy and affordable clothing at rapid speed. Many of these platforms cater to consumer demands for quick and cheap fashion, eco-conscious patrons have also raises concerns about their non-sustainable and un-ethical practices. Their fast production cycles and frequent releases contribute to environmental degradation and exploitation of labor in the supply chain.
Direct-to-Consumer (D2C) fashion brands continue to leverage digital platforms to sell their products directly to consumers, eliminating the need for intermediaries like traditional retailers. D2C brands control their entire customer journey, from product design to distribution, allowing for greater flexibility, faster response to consumer preferences, and provide personalized experiences. D2C facilitating platforms improve brand-consumer interactions enabling data-driven insights to build direct relationships with profitable customers. These characteristics have made many D2C brands like Alia Bhatt's Ed-a-Mamma an interesting acquisition target (Rs 300 crore) by larger players like Reliance Brands.
Talking about digital transformation of fashion retailing, platforms are integrating augmented reality (AR) to revolutionize the shopping experience. AR enables virtual try-ons, allowing consumers to visualize clothing and accessories before purchasing thus enhancing engagement and confidence in online shopping. It also provides a sustainable spin-off as it reduces returns, making it a game-changer in the fashion industry.
Omni-channel retailing in the fashion industry refers to the seamless integration of various shopping channels, such as physical stores, e-commerce websites, mobile apps, and social media platforms. It offers consumers a consistent and interconnected shopping experience, allowing them to browse, purchase, and return products across multiple channels. For fashion retailers, omni-channel strategies increase customer engagement, improve brand loyalty, and enable better data-driven decision-making. By bridging the gap between online and offline shopping, omni-channel retail enhances convenience and customer satisfaction, driving growth and success in the competitive fashion retail landscape.
To conclude, the SPIN acronym captures the prominent trends shaping the future of fashion, retailing, and platforms, highlighting the industry's shift towards sustainability, personalization, influencer-driven marketing, and innovative retail experiences.
OTW
Over the Weekend, my running group PeeranCheruvu Runners organised our regular blood donation camp for our residential community and its neighbourhood.
Since 2017 we had 10 camps where more than 700 (Men 410 Women 141) voluntary Blood Donors donated Blood for Thalassemia Children. We are happy to see consistent growth in the number of Donors at each Camp with a simultaneous increase in Repeat Blood Donors. The camps in our community always have good participation from Residents, Security Staff, Housekeeping Staff and Vendor Staff.
This is in coordination with Aarohi Blood Bank which works to provide high quality and safe blood and related blood products to children suffering from Thalassemia primarily in the Greater Hyderabad Municipality area. Volunteering Opportunities are available at Aarohi Blood Bank for social media and promotional partnerships. Please get in touch with Dhiraj Kaveri if you would like to contribute to their mission of “Bringing Dignity to Life of people by making Quality blood and blood products”.
I Love You
Shailendra
OTM
Opportunities through MountainSpeak are available to donate towards fund raising campaign to Support Varsha To Recover From Coma.
Use the following link to support the cause
Story so far
Varsha, a software engineer at one of the leading software MNCs, is fighting for her life at SGPGI Hospital, Lucknow and in urgent need of the blessings & support from all well-wishers. It was not the case couple of months back, when she went to Uphar Nursing Home, Varanasi for treatment. Unfortunately, a suspected wrong treatment & medical negligency there resulted in her cardiac arrest, followed by hypoxic global brain injury leading to comatose since May 20, 2023. This has completely changed not only her life but also all her family members including her only son - 12 years old Viraj and her husband- Ved Prakash who was a colleague at ICFAI Books.
Once a happy family is now completely devastated as Varsha has been in a state of coma for the last 51 days. Ved Prakash is struggling to arrange funds for further treatment and their son – Viraj is getting emotionally drained out. Till date Ved Prakash has managed Rs 21+ lakhs in 50 days to fund the treatment with the help of his savings and borrowing from friends, families and others. He is now left with a limited fund to manage hospital expenses for a few more days. Thus, he is forced to look for external help as Varsha needs extensive medical aid for her survival for 6-8 months to a year. The daily medical expenses run into thousands and are estimated to be 12-15 lakhs per month.
We need your support to help Ved Prakash & family to take care of the medical expenses and allow Varsha to recover from her current state with continuous & critical medical treatment, Contributions from all would help to revive her life and make the family happy.
The expected monthly expenses will be Rs.12 -15 Lakhs, and at least four months of support sets a target of INR 50 Lakhs. Please help us in the process of fundraising.
Message from the Milaap
Dear Donors,
Thank you all for your love, prayers, and generous support!
To help raise the remaining amount faster, Milaap will now offer a 5% matching on all donations (till the funds last)**. For example, for a 1000 INR of donor's contribution, Milaap will now contribute an additional Rs.50 or (equivalent in USD) to the campaign thereby creating a 1.05X impact.
Milan is not changing any transaction fees for this cause.